Charlottesville, VA
UVA Bayly Building Fralin Museum of Art Study and HVAC Upgrade
Scope of Services
Facility Condition Assessment
Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) Engineering
Fralin Museum of Art’s strategic goals are to advance UVA’s reputation locally, nationally, and internationally by attracting a wider and more-diverse audience and growing its funding sources. The systems in the Bayly Building Fralin Museum of Art needed to be updated to maintain strict indoor environment requirements to preserve the collections and enable the museum to accommodate safe storage and presentation of artifacts from permanent and visiting exhibitions.
Services
As part of our term contract, 2RW’s services for this project, include:
- Facility condition assessment to determine renovation viability, necessary MEP and architectural improvements, and cost as part of the scope planning process
- MEP engineering for:
- The replacement of a constant volume air handler
- An upgraded humidification system from obsolete localized systems to a centralized low-pressure steam humification system
- A new attic tempering system
- Building controls upgrade
- Electrical and plumbing modifications to support the HVAC renovation
- Facilitating, managing, and coordinating construction administration for MEP and architectural projects
Results
Enable artifact conservation through strict temperature and humidity controls (68-72° F db and 40-60% relative humidity) making the museum more attractive for visiting exhibits. This is achieved through:
- Tighter tolerances in temperature-humidity fluctuation with upgraded controls including space/zone sensors which regulate at an accuracy of a minimum of +/- 0.5° db and +/-2% RH
- Uninterrupted humidification with redundant humidification systems
Scope of Services
Facility Condition Assessment
Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) Engineering
OWNER: University of Virginia (UVA)
TIMEFRAME: 2019 – 2021
SIZE: 12,500 SF
COST: $2.7 million
Highlights
- Coordination of MEP design and construction to facilitate and accelerate building envelope and roof replacement projects occurring simultaneously
- Duct cleaning and injection sealing for better air quality and a more energy-efficient building; researched products that minimized potential harm to artifacts
- Consideration and planning of comfortable environment for staff and visitors while meeting museum conservation standards for artifacts
- Coordinated construction planning and phasing around oversized, fixed exhibits
